DISCOVERING AMERICA

This is one of those things they talk about when you are encouraged to go on vacation to “discover” America. And what does that normally involve? Essentially it means a lot of visiting tourist traps where you pay a higher than usual fee to see stuff that you could get in a postcard. It means being shuttled around like cattle on tours where some low paid tour guide recites from memory some speech he or she was taught containing facts you could read about in a history book for free.

And somewhere in the whole process you discover the cardboard, flag waving façade called America, but NOT the real America. I’m speaking of the one that exists behind closed door where real Americans say what they really think.

I’m talking about the kinds of places that you don’t generally take photos of where people don’t always share in the bounty that we believe is America. That kind of discovery normally doesn’t make it on the tourist circuit because who wants to waste their vacation seeing reminders of how their own life sucks?

The real America is a composite of good and bad just like everything. It isn’t perfect or sterile of things that can both inspire patriotism and also anger for the inequity of life.

But the real discovering of America is one that starts from the inside. It begins with where we live and what we do. It is the awareness of the joys of victories of the things in life that want to make you scream. And it is the stamina and determination to keep trying when life deals you a bad hand. That is the discovering of America that we all get to do. Only I’m not sure we want to all the time.

Why face reality when there is cable, fast foods and a host of other was to escape what pisses us off and depresses? That we can savor and enjoy and it too is a form of discovering America.

We look upon the flag and see stars and stripes. But don’t forget it waves which means it maintains the same structure, but it in a constant state of change. That is also a form of discovering if you are willing to accept it.

If not, well pull up a chair and join me in front of the boob tube. We’ll split a six pack or two or three, exchange a few dirty jokes, scratch ourselves and most of all work on discovering the best way not to discover the side of America that we would rather forget.

And if by chance after doing that you feel curious then go ahead and run out there and enjoy whatever. Then once you have discovered the part of America that is all you can handle for another year come back and we’ll start over. Don’t worry I won’t say, “I told you so.”

I might ask you to pass the beer or snacks, but as we lose ourselves in some cable flick we can both smile and know that is a form of discovery also.